High gas prices and a potent turbocharged engine drive V6 sales for Ford's best seller

What good is a big ‘old domestic full-size pickup truck without
a V8 engine under the hood? Half-ton pickups and V8 engines go together like
peanut butter and jelly or Smith & Wesson. But with gas
prices putting the squeeze on many consumers, those who can actually afford
to purchase brand new vehicles are trying to be more economical.

We already reported in late April that Ford is seeing
incredible demand for its new EcoBoost V6 engine in the Ford F-150. Reports
pegged the EcoBoost V6 engine option as taking
36 percent of all F-150 sales.

However, that figure jumped to 41 percent for the month of
May. In addition, the 3.7-liter V6 engine option captured 14 percent, bringing
the total haul for V6 engines to over half of all F-150 sales for the month.

According
to PickupTrucks.com, the
increasing interest in Ford's V6 engine options should come as no surprise
given the current state of gas pries in the United States. However, the
phenomena is still amazing when you consider that the take rate for V6 engines
in competing Toyota Tundra and GMC Sierra/Chevrolet Silverado full size pickups
is in the single-digit range.

Ford’s
3.7-liter V6 engine generates 300hp @ 6,500 rpm and 275 lb-ft of torque at
4,500 rpm. It is EPA rated at 17 mpg in the city and 23 mpg on the highway. The
popular EcoBoost V6 makes 365hp @ 5,000 rpm and 420 lb-ft of torque at a low
2,500 rpm. It has EPA ratings of 16/22.

Both engines run on regular unleaded gasoline, which is a plus
with high gasoline prices.

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quote: Should Dodge decide to start selling 1/2 ton trucks with a 4 cylinder Cummins B series turbodiesel from the factory I predict you'll see more excitement than complaints.

NOPE!! The manufacturers already have diesels engines ready for 1/2 tons and exactly NONE of them are 4 cylinders. The market crash shelved the engines but they're ready to go. NO ONE and I mean NO ONE would buy a 4 cyl diesel in a 1/2 ton truck in the US. Do I really need to explain why?

It should probably be noted that the 4 cylinder Cummins 4BT is a 4 liter 4 cylinder turbo-diesel with 355 ft-lbs of torque and there are already people using it to replace gasoline engines in trucks in order to improve fuel economy.

There's nothing stopping a 4 cylinder diesel from producing enough torque to pull a large truck - just look at some Caterpillar has made. Other than the vehicle sounding like a tractor that is.